Peninsula

5 wrestlers for WCAL champ Serra seeded

By Vytas Mazeika

Daily News Staff Writer

Posted:
02/18/2013 10:41:20 PM PST

Updated:
02/18/2013 10:41:21 PM PST

Fourteen wrestlers in The Daily News' coverage area were announced Sunday as top-6 seeds for the upcoming Central Coast Section wrestling championships, though none were deemed the favorites to win a CCS title.

"Those are just seeds," Serra-San Mateo coach Ricardo Garcia said. "They still have to wrestle."

After winning the outright title in the West Catholic Athletic League, the Padres earned five seeds from the 14 weight classes. Tops on the list is senior Elias Hernandez at 113 pounds as the No. 2 seed. Three other Serra seniors are considered strong possibilities to medal at the CCS tournament: No. 3 seed Jerry De La Rosa at 132 pounds and a pair of No. 6 seeds in 152-pounder Phillip Becerra and 182-pounder Chad Thodos.

"We've been talking about it from the beginning," Garcia said. "And I think that's what makes it more real, more authentic. But it's another qualifier. Our ultimate goal is state, but we still want to perform well here."

Garcia added that the Padres, ranked No. 5 in the CCS according to TheCaliforniaWrestler.com, wish to crack the top 4 for the first time in the program's history. Such a feat might require a strong performance from Luis Alvarez, who appeared the No. 5 seed at 106 pounds.

The Lancers are ranked third in the CCS despite losing to Serra in both their WCAL dual meet and the league championships.

Gunn and crosstown rival Palo Alto each have two wrestlers seeded at the CCS tournament. Gunn senior Eric Cramer, who has lost only twice this season, is the No. 2 seed at 126 pounds, while teammate Stephen Martin comes in at No. 5 in the 182-pound weight class. Paly senior Gary Hohbach is the No. 3 seed at 152 pounds, where he ranks ahead of Petersen and Becerra. Vikings teammate Andrew Frick is the No. 6 seed at 195 pounds.

The CCS wrestling championships will start Friday at 10 a.m. at Independence High in San Jose. The finals begin Saturday at 7 p.m.